"It was heartbreaking", Kuldeep Yadav recalls Rashid Khan cameo in IPL 2018's Qualifier 2

Yadav believes KKR can win this season if they strike a good combination.

By Sameer Deodhar - 01 Sep, 2020

Kuldeep Yadav has been a star performer for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for the past few years. He can be even more useful for the side in spinning conditions on offer in the UAE. He was a part of the KKR side whose hopes were ended after losing the Qualifier 2 in 2018.

At the Eden Gardens, KKR had put the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) into bat. Kuldeep Yadav had bowled exceptionally and had registered figures of 2/29 in his 4 overs. By the 17th over, SRH was reeling at 124/5 with only 19 balls to go.

“Had told my mom I would take a hat-trick,” Kuldeep Yadav on his second ODI hat-trick

That was when Rashid Khan came out to bat and played a crucial cameo. He scored 34 runs in just 10 balls allowing the score to swell to 174/7. The spell became a match-winning one in the end as KKR could only manage 160/9.

Speaking about the cameo on the latest episode of Knights Unplugged, Yadav said, "I remember the match we lost against Sunrisers Hyderabad (in qualifier 2). I was out of the ground because my spell was over. They were on 125 and I thought they would not go beyond 145."

"But Rashid Khan came into the middle and changed the game. We were just one step away from entering the final. It was a heart-breaking moment when we lost the match," he added.

The 25-year-old believes that the Knight Riders can win IPL 2020 if they manage to strike a good combination. He said, "If we can strike a good combination, we can certainly win it this year. After all, it’s cricket, we will win sooner or later."

IPL 2020 begins from September 19 and Kuldeep Yadav will be a sure starter on the KKR side.

By Sameer Deodhar - 01 Sep, 2020

TAGS